Contents

* Contents derived from the Dee Why West,Northern Beaches area,Sydney Northeastern Suburbs,Sydney,New South Wales,:Hamlyn,1974 version. Please note that other versions/publications may contain different contents. See the Publication Details.

Peter MacKenzie, retired from the Ballarat goldfields and living in Melbourne with his family, is lured north to the N. S. W. goldfields. He has mortgaged his home to support his wife and children while he is away and labours unsuccessfully for years before he strikes payable gold. When he returns to Melbourne he finds that even Alligator Desolation, the family dog, has missed him.

Bill Anderson, a rough-spoken larrikin, visits Jones's Alley to tell eleven-year-old Arvie Aspinall that he will lose his job if he doesn't turn up at work at Grinder Brothers. When he learns Arvie died the night before he shows another side to his character.

Mrs Aspinall is faced with debts she is unable to pay, including repairs to her rented house in Jones's Alley. Her landlord takes her to court and she is found liable for the debt. Bill Anderson, the former workmate of her deceased son Arvie, comes to her rescue and helps her escape the bailiff and the loss of her few possessions.